The Soldier: an Advanceshipping Story
by TheAlmightyLucario
Summary: Ash, a poor, lonely soldier, never expected to fall in love on his way to war. Advanceshipping, AaMayl, AshxMay


**So the idea for this fic just flew into my head at school... please leave a review after reading. The war Ash is fighting in is entirely fictional.**

* * *

"Please proceed, sir."

Ash Ketchum grabbed his small duffel bag and walked over to his gate. He was at the Los Angeles International Airport, and everyone around him seemed very cheerful. Except for him.

Ash was about to go fight in a war against Korea after the Koreans had sent a fleet of fighter jets to bomb San Francisco. Although his mother had pleaded with him not to enlist, he did so anyway to help pay for his mother's house, which she could barely pay for due to her poor health. As it happened, Ash was an excellent soldier and the Army accepted him right away.

"Gate 35... Gate 35..." Ash muttered absentmindedly, reading his boarding pass. After locating his gate, he plopped down his bag and took a seat- only to find that someone's cell phone was already there.

Ash picked up the phone. It was the latest iPhone, which was extremely expensive and typically used only by businessmen. He was about to toss it aside when he realized that he should at least find the phone's owner.

Standing up and looking around, Ash saw nobody who looked like they were in search of a phone. Shrugging, he gently set it down and began to read a book.

* * *

May Maple took her passport back from the customs official. Stowing it in her coat pocket, she set off at a brisk pace to her gate. After locating it, she carelessly tossed her purse on the seat next to her and took out several official-looking papers. With a heavy sigh, she uncapped a gold pen and began to write.

She suddenly dropped her papers and pen. 'These goshdarn papers can wait,' she thought. May rose and headed to a nearby Starbucks, where she ordered an ice-cold cappuccino and a scone. She then remembered that she had to call her parents to let them know that she had arrived at the airport, what with Norman and Caroline Maple being huge worrywarts. After searching in her coat and purse for a bit, she suddenly stood bolt upright.

"Wait... where's my phone?"

* * *

Ash sighed and continued to walk around the airport, iPhone in hand. What with the phone's owner remaining unknown and Ash having to go fight in a war, Ash wasn't in the best of moods. Lost in his depressed mood, Ash didn't notice the pretty brown-haired woman walking toward him, who was equally unaware of the raven-haired man in front of her.

_WHACK!_

"OW!" May cried, rubbing her now bruised head. "Watch where you're go-"

The man in front of her was breathtakingly handsome, with ruffled black hair and gorgeous brown eyes. May just stared at him, unaware of the outside world until a voice rang out.

"Um... hello? You just... sort of zoned out there...:

May shook her head and snapped out of her trance. "Oh! Sorry..."

The man smiled. "It's OK... hey, have you seen anyone who might be missing a phone around here? I found this on the seat next to me..." Ash whipped out the iPhone.

"Oh! I've been looking all over for that! Thanks!" May said in a relieved tone. "Um... thanks... who are you?" May blushed at her somewhat rude question.

Ash smiled and said, "Ash Ketchum. Member of the 42nd Infantry Division."

A look of understanding crossed May's face. "Oh... you're fighting in the war... I... I'm sorry."

"Don't be," Ash said, "so why are you going to Korea?"

May gave a sigh. "Business meeting. Boring, but they pay well."

_"All passengers to Seoul, South Korea, please proceed to Gate 35 in preparation for boarding. Again, all passengers to Seoul, proceed to Gate 35."_

"Crap!" May suddenly yelled. "We've got to go!" With that, May grabbed Ash's hand and dragged him off to the gate.

In her haste, she failed to see Ash blush.

* * *

Ash sighed and reclined in his comfortable leather seat. The plane had already taken off and was gently soaring through the orange sky.

"... and then they finally accepted my design, and my roller coaster was built in a few months! Cool, right?"

Ash smiled. Apparently, May was a roller coaster designer for Disney and Universal Studios. She had an outgoing, cheerful personality that Ash couldn't help but be infected by.

"Yeah... cool... hey, do you watch Doctor Who?" Ash asked suddenly.

May gasped. "Oh my gosh, that's my _favorite _show!"

Ash chuckled at her enthusiasm. They soon launched into a long conversation about the show, agreeing on most aspects but disagreeing on one major issue.

"Are you kidding?! David Tennant was so much better than Matt Smith!" Ash yelled.

"Nuh-uh!"

"Yuh-huh!"

"Nuh-uh!"

"Pardon me, but if you two continue to argue like this I'll move you both," a passing flight attendant said sternly.

Ash and May both grinned sheepishly. "Sorry..."

* * *

The rest of the flight passed all too quickly. Soon enough, the plot was saying, "_Welcome to Seoul, South Korea. Please do not unbuckle your seat belts until the aircraft has come to a complete stop. Once again, thank you for flying United Airlines._"

May yawned. She rose to grab her roller from the overhead compartment but was gently stopped by Ash.

"It's OK, I've got it," he said, smiling. May blushed and thought, 'What a gentleman..."

All too soon, it was time to say goodbye. Just as Ash was about to head for the helicopter that was to transport him to his base, May grabbed his arm. "Wait... I want to give you something... to remember me by." May opened her roller and pulled out a stuffed Torchic toy.

Ash grinned. "A Pokemon?"

May suddenly became defensive. "Well, I'll have you know that this very plush toy helped me get thr-"

"It's OK, I have one at home too," Ash said. "I appreciate it, May."

"Well... I guess... this is goodbye..." May said uncomfortably.

Before May had a chance to turn around, Ash quickly gave her a peck on the cheek. "Thanks for everything, May."

And then he was gone, dragged off by his fellow troops, who were all laughing and joking around, not noticing the young brown-haired woman standing there with tears slowly trickling down her cheeks.

* * *

**_One week later..._**

Ash groaned. Life in the base was awful, with no hot running water and bland, tasteless food every day. They had been cooped up in the building ever since the Koreans had begun bombarding the place with shells and bombs.

"Hey, lighten up, kiddo," a tall, dark-skinned man said. "Once this shelling stops, we'll get out there and whup those Koreans' rear ends. Here, I swiped an extra roll for you."

"Thanks, Brock," Ash said, accepting the round objected offered to him. Suddenly, a buzzing sound rang out and red lights began to flash.

"Crap! They're launching an all-out attack on the city!" Brock yelled, grabbing an assault rifle.

Ash leapt to his feet. His base was located right in front of the DMZ. If the North Koreans got through... well, it was essentially "game over".

* * *

**_Downtown Seoul..._**

"What do you mean this coaster is junk?"

May was sitting at a round, polished oak table at the very top of a 50-story skyscraper. She was meeting with her fellow designers, who had just finished rejecting her latest design.

"Well, think about," a green-haired man with an arrogant tone said, "It's not as if our Orlando branch needs another thrill ride."

"But this is new! No one has ever attempted this before! Heck, if we don't become the first to use this sort of technology, then fricking DISNEY will beat us to it!" May's friend Dawn yelled.

"Even so, this design will cost _way _too much," Drew snarkily replied. "We've already blown $1.5 million on those Harry Potter rides of yours."

"But they increased ticket purchases by nearly 5 million!" May shouted.

"I'm sorry, dear, but I'm afraid the board cannot let this design be used," Zoey said. Glancing at the clock on the wall, she said, "Well, that just about wraps up our meeting. Thank you all for coming."

There was a scraping of chairs as everyone stood up and left. Everyone but May, that is, who was fuming in her seat.

"Hey, c'mon, it's not that big of a deal," Drew said charmingly, switching to his "pretty boy" mode. "Hey, you know what, what do you say we go out for lunch now? Just me and you."

May glared at him. "Thanks, but no thanks. I don't date guys that are jerks to me one moment and all nice at the next. Get out of my way." She stomped out of the conference room, leaving a hurt Drew behind.

* * *

**BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!**

"Hold your lines, everyone!" Lt. Surge yelled. "They're gonna run out of ammo soon! We advance in 3... 2... 1!"

A massive yell rang out as the 42nd Division charged out from their hiding spots, mowing down any opposition with their guns.

"Too easy, eh, Ash?" Brock said gleefully.

"Yeah... a little too easy..." Ash muttered worryingly, fingering the Torchic doll May had given him. "I wonder-"

**_BBOOOOOMMMM!_**

A _massive_ explosion filled everyone's ears as the Vietnamese bomb fell upon the city. When the dust cleared, nearly 3/4 of the soldiers were dead.

Brock gasped. "Oh my go-"

_Brakabrakabraka!_

Brock stumbled and fell to the ground with several bullet holes in his chest. Ash just stared in horror and grief as his closest friend died before his eyes.

Something changed inside Ash on that day, with his comrades lying in pools of blood and his commander and best friend lay bullet-ridden on the concrete. Something snapped.

Picking up his rifle, he stood and sprayed the air with bullets. Several Vietnamese soldier instantly fell to the ground. Ash didn't even notice. He had just one goal in mind: get to the base and blow up all the old land mines. It was the only chance he had of stopping the attack. Dodging bullets and explosions, he finally reached the base- only to find it overrun with Vietnamese.

Reacting quickly, he tossed a grenade into the hallway, taking out several enemies. He slowly made his way through the twisting corridors to the control room, where he almost pressed the detonation button when a swarm of Vietcong stormed the room and shot Ash in the leg.

"Such a shame," the commander whispered in almost perfect English. "You were so close... yet so far... stupid American. It's over."

Through a haze of pain, Ash stood up as well as he could and managed to press the button as he croaked, "It's not over till I say it's over, motherf-"

**_KABOOOOOOOOOMMM!_**

* * *

_**At an Embassy Suites in Seoul...**_

May flopped down on her soft queen-sized mattress. The day had been a bit of a letdown, what with Drew stalking her throughout the whole day and asking her out and her coaster being rejected.

In fact, the only bright spot of the say was Ash...

For some reason, May couldn't get the handsome raven-haired man out of her mind. She remembered the Torchic doll she had given him and wondered if he still had it.

Sighing, she grabbed the sleek remote and flipped on the TV. A news channel came up with a gray-haired reporter saying, "_There has just been a massive Vietcong attack here on the American military base located near the DMZ. The base had been used by the 42nd Infantry Division before the Vietcong-_"

May sat bolt upright. 42nd Division. Hadn't Ash said that he was in the 42nd Division. Worried and intrigued, she turned the volume up and leaned forward.

"_**We're not quite sure what's just happened, but we have reason to believe that someone detonated the old land mines around the base to get rid of the Vietcong. Even though it was, in fact, a brilliant move, whoever pressed the button is most likely dead, as well as everyone in the nearby** **area,**_"a grim-faced general said.

May gasped in horror.

"_**That's General Harris on the Vietcong attack. We're not quite sure if there are any survivors, but- wait a minute- what's that orange thing over**_**_ there_?**"

* * *

Ash groaned and opened his eyes. He looked around at the carnage surrounding him. Everyone but him was dead. In fact, it was a miracle that he was alive.

He tried to stand up but fell and screamed in pain. After quickly checking his legs, he found that his left leg was broken and the right one was beaten up. Realizing walking and limping were not options, he slowly began to crawl across the ruined landscape.

Pieces of rubble were everywhere and smoke filled the air, eliciting several rasping coughs from Ash. Crawling became harder and harder, but he kept pressing on.

Eventually, though, Ash couldn't go any further. He collapsed, wheezing. 'This isn't _that _bad of a place to die,' he thought. 'I just wish I could've said goodb- are those people?!'

Squinting, he could make out a news van and a man with a microphone, who seemed to speaking towards a camera. Invigorated, he realized that they were facing his way and knew what to do.

With the last of his strength, he pulled the Torchic out of his pocket and raised it in the air.

* * *

"What are you waiting for? Let's go check it out!"

CNN reporter Tim Johannson dragged his cameraman and the general with him over to the mysterious orange object bobbing in the wreckage.

"What is that?" the general shouted, bewildered.

"I dunno... it almost looks like... like one of those Pokemon things..." the cameraman said.

"Oh my gosh, I loved those when I was a kid!" Tim said excitedly.

"That's really beside the point... wait! There's someone there!"

The three rushed over to the bloody, soot-covered soldier.

"What's your name, Private?" the general asked.

The man lifted his head slowly to reveal his brown eyes. "A... Ash Ketchum..."

* * *

"So 'Ash Ketchum' is now being airlifted out to Lilycove Hospital (was uninspired for hospital name) in downtown Seoul. The medic here says Ash will be fine, but doctors at the hospital remain dubiou-"

May immediately dashed outside and grabbed a taxi to Lilycove Hospital, worried sick. At the same time, she found herself wondering why she was worrying about Ash. They had just gotten to know each other two weeks ago.

So why was she so nervous?

* * *

_Groan... uugghh... everything hurts... stupid bright lights... wait... lights?_

Ash groggily opened his eyes and looked around. He was in a sterile white room with computers showing images of bones, heartbeats, and muscle tissue. A hospital.

He tried to rise but realized that there were several tubes attached to his arms. Feeling slightly alarmed, he struggled to get out of bed but stopped when someone laid a hand on his shoulder.

"Take it easy, son," the doctor, a man with glasses, a scraggly beard, and a smile said. "Sorry about the tubes, but it was the only way we could get your blood circulating again. You'll be out in no time."

Ash then spotted a pretty brunette woman sitting in a visitor's chair, fingers nervously messing with her purse.

"M... May?"

Her head suddenly snapped up. She rushed over to Ash and threw her arms around him. "You're all right!"

"Yeah... I guess I am... I just realized that I owe you, actually."

May gave him a quizzical look. "What do you mean?"

"That Torchic doll you gave me... it saved my life. I wouldn't have been noticed by those news people had it not been for the doll."

May sighed. "Well, I'm glad the doll came in handy."

"That's right. And I do owe you one, so I guess I have to repay you... somehow," Ash said.

May blushed and raised an eyebrow. "How are you going to do that?"

Without a word, Ash leaned over and kissed May on the lips.

* * *

**Ugh... this whole story feels so rushed... but still, please please please please REVIEW!**


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